Team Up in the Phantom Zone (Supergirl #9 Review)

Batgirl shows up in National City just in time to help Supergirl save a friend who has been sucked into the Phantom Zone. Will the adventure live up to the hype of a Supergirl/Batgirl team up?

What you need to know: Supergirl goes to the TychoTech New Energy Expo to investigate how the company has been able to access Phantom Zone technology that only the DEO could access. Also in attendance is Ben, Kara’s coworker at CatCo, who is there to report on the Expo and Barbara Gordon, who owns an energy company back in Gotham. The Expo is attacked by Magog, who is trying to kill Supergirl for something she will do in the future. During the battle, the Phantom Zone tech is activated and Ben is sucked into the Phantom Zone. Gordon assumes her identity of Batgirl and prevents anybody else from getting pulled into the portal. Supergirl defeats Magog and the two heroines go into the breach after Ben.

What you will find out: Magog has attacked Supergirl for something she hasn’t even done yet. Apparently, her legacy leads to Magog’s family dying. This is not the first villain who has attacked Kara for something that happens in the future. In the previous issue, the Emerald Empress tried to kill Supergirl and her cousin, Superman. Magog mentions that the Fatal Five are after Supergirl as he escapes from Cameron Chase and the DEO.

Supergirl and Batgirl quickly find Ben and Kara tells them a bit about the Phantom Zone. The issue then ends with a scene of a villain in shadow, who wants to capture Supergirl and drain her power so he can escape the Phantom Zone.

What just happened: This issue is the first in an arc entitled “Escape from the Phantom Zone”. This issue did well as an initial installment of a story. It got all the players in place and got the action rolling. The writing by Orlando was good. The interactions between Supergirl and Barbara Gordon were a nice touch. It was obvious that Supergirl recognized Barbara as Batgirl. The two had met in the Batgirl annual. Orlando has also brought the comic in line with the television show without the comic book losing its own identity. He has introduced the Danvers family and had them become Supergirl ‘s guardian. She has adopted the identity of Kara Danvers and works for Cat Grant, as an intern of sorts, at CatCo. This version of Kara is younger and a teenager. She goes to high school and works with the DEO as well.

The only real complaint I have about this series is the art. I am just not loving it. It seems a bit sloppy at times. Ching draws some cute faces, but his action scenes aren’t exciting like a fight should be. Take a look at the fight. The art isn’t every detailed.

Rating 6/10

Final Thought: The writing is good and entertaining, but the art brings the rating down. If you are a Supergirl fan, I recommend the book, but hope they change artists soon.